Members of the Small Scale Miners Association of Ghana have expressed deep regret for voting for the New Patriotic Party (NPP), saying the resultant government has only been a disappointment to them.
At a press conference that they held at Twifu Ntafrewaso in the Twifu Atti-Mokwa District of the Central Region, a spokesperson of the group Abdul Alhassan Razak bemoaned what he says is the “total betrayal” of the Akufo-Addo government.
“We want to express our total displeasure about the government’s u-turn on the issues raised at the recently held small-scale mining dialogue at the Accra International conference Centre. For example is we never discussed anything about the militarization or using force to take people out on our legally acquired license sites.We have regretted voting for the NPP government in the 2016 general elections,” Razak said.
The press conference was used t address the wanton burning of mining equipment that government seizes at the mining site.
The Small scale miners say they operate with the requisite permits however, soldiers deployed by the government keep seizing their equipment and burning them as if they are illegal miners.
They warned that if the torching of their equipment continues, they will have no choice but hold a massive demonstration across the country against government.
Small scale miners were a very important constituency for the NPP when the party was in opposition.
Members contributed monies to support then Presidential candidate Akufo-Addo’s campaign, helping him win the 2016 election.
However, the miners say that since coming to power, the NPP has only disappointed them.